Lakeland Woman Charged With Aggravated Manslaughter in Death of Her Disabled Son

Wednesday

Jul 10, 2013 at 10:30 PM

A 45-year-old Lakeland woman has been charged with aggravated manslaughter of a disabled adult in the death of her 26-year-old mentally disabled son, who died in April.

By STEPHANIE ALLENTHE LEDGER

LAKELAND | A 45-year-old Lakeland woman has been charged with aggravated manslaughter of a disabled adult in the death of her 26-year-old mentally disabled son, who died in April.Janet Wade Stevens of 2212 Weber St. was arrested April 22 on charges of aggravated abuse of a disabled adult, destroying or tampering with evidence and exploitation of a disabled person involving less than $20,000, according to the Polk County Sheriff's Office.The State Attorney's Office added the aggravated manslaughter charge Wednesday, after autopsy and toxicology results showed her son's death was directly related to her neglect of his basic medical needs, Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Carrie Eleazer said.On April 1, Stevens called the Sheriff's Office about 8:45 a.m., saying she awoke to find her son unresponsive, an arrest report stated. He was pronounced dead at the home. Stevens and her 18-year-old daughter, Rolanda Stevens, told deputies that Michael Stevens was born mentally disabled, had been diagnosed with epilepsy and wore adult diapers because he was unable to use the bathroom by himself. Janet Stevens said she had recently run out of her son's seizure medication and could not remember the name of his doctor, reports stated. According to reports, deputies found Michael Stevens lying in a bed in one of the home's bedrooms, covered in flies, wearing only a shirt and hat. He had open sores on the lower half of his body, but no signs of physical trauma, Detective Jason McPherson noted in an arrest report. Janet Stevens told deputies she had not changed Michael Stevens' diaper in about two days and he had not left the bedroom for about three days. She said she and her daughter had last seen Michael Stevens alive the previous night, sleeping on the bed, reports stated. And when she found him unresponsive, she immediately called for help.But Rolanda Stevens told McPherson a different story. She told detectives that her mother initially lied about how they found her brother, and said it was actually earlier that morning, later determined to be about 3 a.m., according to the report. She said her mother awakened her because something was wrong with her brother, who was sitting in a plastic chair in the corner of the bedroom. According to the report, Rolanda Stevens told detectives that Michael Stevens often slept in the chair, which was later found by detectives outside the home with hatched maggot larva shells on it. She said Janet Stevens told her they needed to clean up Michael Stevens so they wouldn't get in trouble. Janet Stevens moved her son to the bed, cut off his pants and then had Rolanda Stevens put them in garbage bags, along with trash picked up from the bedroom, the report said. Inside the garbage bags, detectives found the pants covered in feces, hatched maggot larva shells and live maggots, the report said. They also found pieces of rope and electrical cord. When detectives interviewed other family members about the care Janet Stevens gave her son, several said they hadn't been to the home in months or years. But when they visited, Michael Stevens was frequently tied up in the plastic chair, or locked in the bedroom with bungee cords, according to the Sheriff's Office. Relatives offered to help care for Michael Stevens or take custody of him, but Janet Stevens did not want to stop receiving her son's disability check, the report stated. Further investigation revealed that the Florida Department of Children and Families had investigated previous complaints dating to 2009, regarding the treatment Janet Stevens was giving her son.According to the report, Michael Stevens had not seen his doctor in almost two years, and Janet Stevens had not filled his seizure medication in about a year and half. An autopsy report by Dr. Vera Volnikh of the District 10 Medical Examiner's Office stated that Michael Stevens died after choking on his own vomit following a seizure. He also had severe diaper rash, the report stated. "The toxicology has come back, and the medical examiner can confirm that his death was a direct result from her lack of medical care," said Eleazer, the Sheriff's Office spokeswoman said.Janet Stevens was in the Polk County Jail on $17,000 bond from her original charges, and is awaiting a first court appearance on the aggravated manslaughter charge.

[ Stephanie Allen can be reached at stephanie.allen@theledger.com or 863-802-7550. ]

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